Formaldehyde-generator



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1. O. I. AFPELDER.

FORMALDEHYDE GENERATOR.

Patented June 7,1898..

Tim

(No Model.) 0. 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

PORMALDEHYDE GENERATOR. No. 605,372. Patented June 7, 1898.

will I I m: News PETERS c0. PHDYIJ-LITHQ, WAsHINGTON n c.

-N rrn TATES OSCAR I. AFFELDER, or ALLEGHENY, PENNSYLVANIA.

FORMALDEHYDE-GENERATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters latent No. 605,372, dated June 7,1898 Application filed June 1,1897. Serial No. 639,064. (No model.)

To 0% whom it may concern;

Be it known that I, OSCAR I. AFFELDER, a citizen of the United States ofAmerica, residing at Allegheny, in the county of Allegheny and State ofPennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inGenerators for Formaldehyde, of which the following is a specification,reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in aprocess for forming formaldehyde direct from wood-alcohol, and has forits object to provide simple, effective,

and inexpensive means for thus producing formaldehyde gas fordisinfecting purposes. This is accomplished bymeans of a lamp, thegenerator consisting of a double-compartment tank or reservoir whichsupplies alcohol by means of suitable connections to a wick, a burner bywhich artificial, natural, gasolene gas, or any other suitablegas may beburned, and a chimney containing a foraminous casing or mantle Withinthe same."

The object of the generator is toproduce formaldehyde gas by means of aforced vaporization of alcohol, vapors of which, together with air,passing through the aforesaid foraminous casing or mantle and issuingfrom the chimney into the room, building, or other apartment asformaldehyde. In this process the alcohol is not ignited, the wick beingsimply an agent to convey the alcohol to the heated area, thus insuringa forced vaporization. The tank or reservoir is so constructed that thealcohol will be uniformly supplied to the wick, the lower compartment ofthe tank or reservoir being almost filled with alcohol through the spoutarranged on the side of the tank, and the upper compartment beinglikewise nearly filled, the alcohol being fed to the lower compartmentby means of the capillary tube extending into the same and in suchquantity as, may be required to keepa constant head of alcohol in thelower:

compartment. By means of the outer tube connecting the lower compartmentwith the wick alcohol is supplied to the same uniformly.

In order to illustrate and describe the manner in which I produce theformaldehyde gas, I have shown several views of the apparatus employedforthis purpose, and in describing the several views, .in which: I

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the apparatus, with the chimney partlybroken away. Fig, 2 is a vertical sectional viewof the tank and itsconnections with the burner. Fig. 3. is a top plan view of the burnerandoonnec tions. Fig. 4 isa sectional view of the chimney. l 1

Referring now to the drawings byre ferenceletters, a represents the tankor reservoir, which is provided with a suitable bottom b and cover 0.Located about midway of this tank or reservoir is a false bottom d,having a capillary tube 6 extending downward into the lower compartmentof the tank that is formed by means of the false bottom, and arranged inthe side of the tank andbelow the false bottom is a tube or spoutfihaving an air-tight seal g. A capillary tube h communicates with thelower compartment of the tank or reservoir through the bottom I) and isprovided on its outer end with a screwthread 71;, which receives thethreaded nipple l ofthe upwardly-extending pipe or tube m, said tube hhaving a suitable supportingbrace n and a stop-cock 0 arranged at anydesired point therein. The tube or pipe 1% carries awick p, whichprotrudesthrough the upper'end of the tube, and the lower end extendstoor nearly to the connections of the tube or pipe m with the tube or pipeh Arranged around the upper end of the tube or pipe m is a circularburner q, havinga series of perforations q, said burner being supportedin any suitable manner,the form shown in the drawings being by means ofcurved arms 9", attached to the burner and to a collar s, which engageson the tube or pipe m, said arms protruding above the level of theburner and thus forming a support to engage the inner periphery of thechimney t, which has arranged therein a short distance above the burnera foraminous casing or mantle a, which may be composed of wire-gauze,metal, or other suitable material corrugatedso as .to increase theheating-surface and isadapted to generate heat around theescaping-"alcoholvapors. A supply-pipe 'u is connected tothe burner andmay be attached to the gas-supply by any suitable means, said pipe '0having a suitable stop-cock w arranged at any suitable point thereon.The tank or reservoir having been filled with wood-alcol1ol,the samepasses through the tube or pipe connection h to the wick p and is drawnthrough the tube or 'pipe m by this means. The gas having been ignitedin the burner, a flame is thus provided entirely around the outside ofthe chimney. By reason of the heat generated by the flame, said heatbeing retained by the aid of the foraminous casing or mantle, the airladen with alcohol-vapor becomes heated and the formaldehyde gas thusgenerated passes off through the chimney into the room or building. Atthe same time as the alcohol from the lower compartment passes into thetube h the supply in the said lower compartment is replenished by thealcohol in the upper compartment dripping through the capillary tube e,thus retaining a constant supply of alcohol in the lower compartment.The formaldehyde gas will thus be generated uniformly as long as thehead of alcohol in the lower compartment is kept constant or until aquantity equal to the amount placed inthe upper compartment has beenvaporized by the heat at the burner, even after which it will beproduced, but in decreasing quantities. The formaldehyde gas thusgenerated will be found to be a powerful disinfectant against allpathogenic microbes.

Having fully described my invention, What I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

1. In an apparatus for producing formaldehyde gas, consisting of a tankhaving two compartments, the upper tank receiving and supplying thelower tank with alcohol, a pipe connected to the lower tank and carryinga wick at its free end, a burner surrounding said free end of the pipe,and connected thereto by means of braces, a gas-supply connected to saidburner, supports projecting inwardly from said burner, a metallicchimney engaging said supports, so that the flame acts upon the outsideof said chimney and having a foraminous' mantle arranged therein, saidvconnections with a gas-supply, said burner surrounding the end of thedischarge-pipe and connected thereto, a metallic chimney supportedwithin said burner so that the flame acts upon the outside thereof andhavinga foraminous mantle arranged therein, said chimney producing adraft so that the vaporized alcohol will come in contact with saidforaminous casing or mantle, whereby formaldehyde gas will be generatedand pass out through the chimney, substantially as shown and described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

OSCAR I. AFFELDER.

- lVitnesses;

JOHN NOLAND,

THOS. M. BOYD, Jr.

